Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a great citizen of my riding and a great Canadian who sadly has recently passed away.

Dr. Frederick G. Robertson was born March 7, 1909, in Belleville, Ontario. He came from a political family, his father being a member of the Ontario Legislature in the 1920s. He was a doctor and businessman, but it was as a member of this Parliament that Dr. Robertson made his greatest contributions to his community.

First elected in 1949 to the House of Commons, Dr. Robertson occupied positions that included Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of National Health and Welfare. Dr. Robertson was also a delegate to the 14th Session Economic and Social Council of the United Nations. The dedication that he had to his constituency and to the fundamental needs and hopes of our citizens should serve as an example to us all.

I ask all members to join me today in paying tribute to a great Canadian, Dr. Fred Robertson.

Mr. Speaker, today we pay tribute to one of Canada's best freestyle skiers: Jean-Luc Brassard, of Grande-Île, Quebec.

Last weekend, Jean-Luc made the difficult decision to stop competing in mogul events after ten years on the World Cup circuit.

Jean-Luc is undoubtedly one of the most accomplished and respected winter sports athletes in Canada. He won a gold medal at the 1994 Olympic Games in Lillehammer, was crowned world champion twice, in 1993 and again in 1997, and held the mogul cup title during three consecutive years.

He took part in four Olympic Winter Games, quite a feat for an athlete. He carried the flag for Canada in the opening ceremonies at the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympic Games.

Jean-Luc's involvement in various charitable campaigns, and fundraising activities for children in particular, is also well known.

Mr. Speaker, on October 19 I had the pleasure of attending the gala dinner of the 15th Congress of Taiwan Chambers of Commerce of North America.

With hundreds of delegates from 32 cities across North America in attendance, the President of the Taiwan Chamber of Commerce in B.C., Mr. Jason Ko, organized a first class convention that provided his members with an opportunity to exchange information and further promote business opportunities here in Canada.

It is through the work of business associations like the Taiwan Chamber of Commerce in B.C. that the Canadian economy continues to lead all other industrialized nations in economic growth.

Mr. Speaker, October 24 marks the 57th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations. This global institution has, for more than half a century, worked to save succeeding generations from war, reaffirm the faith in fundamental human rights, and promote social progress and quality of life.

The accomplishments of the UN since its inception are undeniable. We have seen great improvements in our handling of hostile situations. Human rights violations are taken far more seriously, and there is a growing standard of living throughout the world.

Communities throughout Canada and 188 UN member states around the world are celebrating United Nations Day. The UN is by no means a quick fix to the international problems we see today. It is however an essential instrument to deal with the various international issues we see develop daily. The UN serves an important purpose in the world today, and we should honour the work this institution has done.

I ask all members and people throughout Canada to honour this day and this fine institution which has and continues to make the world safer and more hospitable for all people.

Mr. Speaker, thousands of citizens of the Rosetown area have signed an important petition calling for government action for our Prairie farmers. They fear financial disaster for the grain and livestock industries. In turn, they fear economic ruin for our fragile rural economies.

These Canadians are not looking for handouts. They are looking for the government to level the playing field with foreign competition. They do not want to be subsidized like farmers in Europe and the United States. They want fewer foreign subsidies to allow them to compete fairly. Higher food costs and dependence on foreign food supplies is a dangerous direction for us to be heading.

The thousands who took the time to sign the petition are hoping our government will take the time to provide our farmers with a fair international trading environment before we loose our agriculture industries.

Our farmers are the best in the world, and in a fair trading environment they would not just survive, they would thrive.

Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to inform the House that the first woman chief commissioner has been appointed to the Canadian Grain Commission.

Chris Hamblin helps manage a grain and seed operation with her husband Lorne and her brother and sister-in-law in Morris, Manitoba. A long time leader and activist in the western Canadian agricultural community, Chris is a former vice-president of Keystone Agriculture.

I know I speak on behalf of her widespread network of family and friends, farmers in the area and indeed on behalf of all Manitobans when I congratulate Chris. Chris has made Manitoba proud.

I am sure that Chris Hamblin will fulfill her duties as chief commissioner with the same dedication and skill that she has brought to her many other endeavours.

Mr. Speaker, the very objective journalist from the National Post, Jonathan Kay, just found another reason to explain why the Montreal Expos are leaving: separatism.

The headline today in this Canadian newspaper read “Separatism killed the Expos”.

In hockey, was it separatism in Manitoba that caused the Winnipeg Jets to relocate to Phoenix?

In basketball, was it separatism in British Columbia that caused the Vancouver Grizzlys to relocate to Memphis?

I have an idea as a career move for Jonathan Kay; he should team up, as a sportscaster, with Don Cherry, another good friend of Quebeckers. The CBC could then boast about paying two great sports experts on national television with Quebec taxpayers' money.

Mr. Speaker, today the Minister of National Defence will be opening Damage Control Training Facility, or DCTF, Kootenay in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

The facility was built at a cost of $21 million and will provide Canadian Forces personnel with the opportunity to train for a variety of possible situations.

The facility will house 15 burn rooms; 2 flood rooms; a mock helicopter prop, complete with a simulated flight deck; a nuclear, biological and chemical contamination training area; a smoke maze; and even electrical panels for casualty power training.

I am delighted to see this sort of investment in the Canadian Forces in the Halifax area. I hope this announcement is the beginning of a long trend of more of the same.

Mr. Speaker, I am absolutely delighted to rise today to congratulate Yann Martel, who yesterday won the coveted Man-Booker Prize for his book Life of Pi . Life of Pi had previously won the Hugh MacLennan Award for fiction.

The Man-Booker Prize represents the very best of contemporary fiction. One of the world's most famous literary prizes, the Booker has been called the ultimate accolade for every fiction writer.

Canadian authors have historically ranked among the best in the world. Our writers keep producing masterworks that captivate a universal audience. Canada has a strong literary presence, and we should be proud of our authors and all our creators.

I would like to invite all Canadians to join me in congratulating Yann Martel for winning the 2002 Man-Booker Prize.

This great Quebecker, who was visibly moved by such an honour, was proud to revisit the arena where he first began skating, at the age of five.

This magnificent athlete, who is one of the best players in the National Hockey League and who has won two Stanley Cups and a gold medal at the Olympics, is not resting on his laurels and wants to win his seventh scoring championship.

His agility on the ice will undoubtedly propel him to the top. In fact, Number 66 showed us yesterday that he was at the top of his game by giving an outstanding performance, in spite of the health problems that have plagued him.

The Maurice Richard award is a reflection of the respect of Quebeckers and is testimony to a great hockey career that makes all of Quebec proud.

Bravo, Mario Lemieux. We, in the Bloc Quebecois, wish you a good health and hope that you will give us many more very exciting moments.

Mr. Speaker, this morning in Australia, former Yukoner Rick Gleason died of injuries received during the Bali bomb attack.

On behalf of Parliament I wish to express our sincere condolences to Rick's family for the loss of their dearly loved and caring family member.

In talking to Mr. Gleason's family this morning, I let them know that I went to the Australian High Commission, not only to offer our condolences for their losses but to express our appreciation for the Australian government's generous assistance to Rick's family and to other Canadians, and the wonderful care provided by the health care workers and the hospital in Australia to Rick in his last days.

For Mr. Gleason I will do anything in my power to end these senseless acts and to remove the conditions that cause them. I thank Rick for his wonderful life. We will all miss him.

Mr. Speaker, October 20 to 26 is National Small Business Week. Recognizing this week is an excellent opportunity to acknowledge the vital role small and medium size enterprises play in the Canadian economy.

Ninety-seven per cent of Canadian businesses have fewer than 50 employees. Small businesses account for nearly 50% of Canada's GDP, employing six out of ten Canadians and creating two-thirds of all new jobs.

Since the fall of last year and in the wake of the capital market's tumult, the Canadian economy has outperformed expectations and continues to create jobs. This accomplishment is in large part due to the resiliency, dedication, hard work and dynamism of small business enterprises.

The PC Party applauds the hardworking small business enterprises in Canada and the excellent work done by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. Yet with the Liberal government in power every Canadian business person knows that the best way to have a small business in Canada is to start a large business and wait.

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure also to remind all members of the House that October 20 to 26 is National Small Business Week. Small and medium size businesses play a vital role in the Canadian economy.

Companies in my riding of Etobicoke North, like Hemosol, Ifire and Sohiel Mosun Ltd., account for nearly 50% of our gross domestic product and employ six out of every ten Canadians. Moreover, these businesses are currently responsible for generating a majority of all the new jobs created in Canada.

It is obvious that these companies have made it possible for the Canadian economy to avoid the recent economic downturn that has occurred in the United States.

I ask all members to take this opportunity to join with me in congratulating the small and medium size businesses in their ridings, thanking them for a job well done and wishing them continued success in the future.

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Prime Minister accepted the resignation of the former solicitor general after the ethics counsellor said that he had violated rules in the Holland College matter. Yet we now know that the government had advice from the ethics counsellor on this matter since 1999.

What good are any ethical guidelines if the Prime Minister allows his cabinet ministers to override them?

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister knows that is playing very tightly with what the ethics counsellor said.

The government knew the Holland College dealings constituted a conflict of interest three years ago. It knew that when the Holland College dealings were raised in the House last May and June by several members of the opposition and yet the former solicitor general, the Deputy Prime Minister and the Prime Minister assured the House that no conflict existed.

Mr. Speaker, I never misled the House. I said, and I repeat it again today, that the institution is a public institution controlled by the provincial government with a private board and it selected Mr. MacAulay to be the president of the college. I think there was absolutely no personal interest on the part of the president of the college in promoting the advancement of this institution in P.E.I.

Mr. Speaker, I hope the Prime Minister's defence is not simply that he does not know the difference between right and wrong even when his own ethics counsellor tells him so.

I return. The Deputy Prime Minister, the Prime Minister and the former solicitor general all assured the House that there was no conflict of interest in the Holland College case. We know now that the former solicitor general knew otherwise and the ethics counsellor had told him in 1999.

When did the Prime Minister become informed of the ethics counsellor's position?

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister says last week. I will ask him to clarify that answer.

We know from testimony that has been given elsewhere that the ethics counsellor advises the Prime Minister and briefs him on question period responses. This matter on the Holland College dealings was raised in question periods last May and June.

Is he saying that he was never advised by the ethics counsellor before he answered questions in question period?